I have been longing for another cloudy day like this...

Birthday for Two!

Alexis and Rebecca had their 5th birthday about two weeks ago. On their actual birthday I took cupcakes into their lunch at school, we all went to the park and then Aunt Susan came over with presents and helped us sing happy birthday to the girls.

Friday was finally their PJ sleepover party that they have been asking for since last year. It was CrAzY with about 18 kids aged 1 year up to 12 but it was so much fun. We danced, played, ate tons of treats and then calmed down (kinda) and watched a movie while we waited for parents to come. The girls looked so happy the whole time that I am so glad we did it and I will say it went pretty well for having so many kids!

The Birthday Girls

Auntie Amanda, Auntie Sam, Paige, and Grandma (the best helpers ever!!)

The kids, Chloe, Alexis, Rebecca, Illiana, Seth, Alex, Aidan, Lennox, Natalie, Lailie, Jacob, Josie, Maile, Leila, Cooper and Urijah!

Party Time

 Natalie had a small little family party last night and she sure had fun. She played and played with all her cousins, ate some bundt cake and opened some presents.

Happy Birthday Natalie

It came and went in the blink of an eye.  I can't believe my last baby is a one year old.  I don't want to believe it but it is my reality.  As sad as I am,  I can say that she is becoming one of the cutest toddlers I know.  She is a funny little girl, always trying to make us laugh making her funny faces and noises.  She loves to be her own person, don't try to help her do anything!  She loves to sit in things and loves playing with all the big kids.  Natalie is a great eater and could be a better sleeper for sure, maybe one day!  I am very excited for what Natalie has in store for us as she grows!

School!

This past Monday I watched all my kids get a little bigger. Zachary off to 7th grade, Maile to first, Alexis and Rebecca to all day kindergarten. A new chapter in our life is starting and we are all really excited. I will be honest and say that the past year has been pretty hard, my patience level has been really low and I couldn't keep the twins busy enough to stay out of trouble. I can already tell that being in school is going to give them the stimulation they have been needing for a long time. It is also going to give the really worn out mama a much needed break! Everyone likes their teachers and so far we had a really good morning routine going. I am so excited to see what this year is going to bring us!!

Bee-U-tiful Day

I am not going to lie. I am scared of bees and wasps. Really scared. So lets just say a couple of my friends and I pack up our kids and some lunch and head out for a little fresh air in the Mountains. The picnic area I have been to a few times before was closed so we chose a spot just barley off a hiking path nearby. We lay down some blankets, open our sandwiches and all of a sudden there are few bee's (or yellow jackets) flying around us. I didn't panic at first because I still thought they were the little things that look like bee's, you know the ones that fly funny but don't sting. Anyhow before you know it there were lots of them and they wanted our lunch. They were flying all around us and in our bags and on our food. Now me pretty darn scared, my kids pretty darn scared, Danielle pretty darn scared and lucky for us Chrissy, brave as can be. She pretty much saved the day and picked up all our stuff for us, took on hungry bee/wasp things and rescued all of our lunch. Now we thought we must have been near a hive so we chose another spot that seemed to be free of the pests. Well no such luck, they followed us there and then all the way to the car. I thought the day was ruined but we decided to eat in the car and then drove back down to the Mt. Charleston hotel where the kids got to run around, we got some pretty pictures and we only had to deal with a few bee/wasp things there. What I thought to be a spoiled afternoon turned into a pretty good time. Unfortunately I had my camera set all funky and didn't realize till half way through the day but I love these pics so I had to do some serious stuff to them to make them even light enough to see but I love them anyways. These kids have grown up together. I love seeing how big they all are getting and how much they enjoy each other when they are together.

Sunset

One of my favorite things is a pretty and colorful sunset. I have shared this love with my kids and if we happen to catch one I make sure to point it out and have everybody stop the usual chatter and drink in the beautiful colors. I thought it was time for the girls to get a better vantage point to see the sunset so we took a quick hike up the Mts. Edge hill. They loved it. Wind blowing in their faces, pretty pink sunset and big girl time with Mom. It was a quick moment but one I will remember for a long time.
The flash on my iPhone is pretty funky so everyone has crazy eyes My little sunset watching zombies.

California

A few posts back I think I mentioned that I have really awesome Aunts. Well lucky for me my Aunt Lezlie lives down in Newport Beach. We got the chance to go visit California Aunt Lezlie for a week and the girls didn't want to leave. We had a blast swimming, going to the beach and hanging with my cousins. It was a relaxing week and I loved watching my kids enjoy themselves so much. I am so thankful that Aunt Lezlie and Uncle Kevin are so willing to have me and my four crazy girls come and stay. We really had a lot of fun and all my girls can talk about since we left is when we are going back!

Bellagio Garden

We are all having so much fun meeting up with our friends for "Field Trip Friday." Even if we are having a boring week, we have had our Friday's this summer to look forward too. Two weeks ago it was at the Bellagio Gardens. It is so pretty but there isn't much to do besides look and get some cute pictures so we were in and out in half an hour.

My Sweet Maile

Maile is six! Life is speeding by and my baby girl is growing up. I am feeling a few emotions thinking about her, I am looking forward to all the exciting things that come with getting older but at the same time I wish time would stand still so I can keep her my baby forever.
At age six Maile is becoming my helper more and more. She helps me with Natalie and tries most of the time to teach Lexi and Becca how big girls behave. Maile loves to swim, she loves to dance, loves riding her bike, loves being silly, love her big brother and to wrestle around with him, loves to please Mama, and adores her Daddy. For Maile's Birthday Grandma, her sisters, her brother and I took her to lunch at her pick Metro Pizza. It was so nice sitting and reminiscing with my Mom about the day she was born. Such a scary but happy day for all of us. Maile was such a little fighter! Maybe that is why she is so stubborn now :) Later that evening we had all the family over for ice cream sundae's. Maile's told me she didn't want cake, just ice cream so we did our own little ice cream bar. Maile got everything she had been asking for and was especially excited to finally get her Happy Napper!

"Great"

I am incredibly lucky to have such a big family and I am also so lucky for the love they show my kids. On this particular day "Great" Aunt Susan planned a whole day for the kids. First a very yummy lunch followed by an afternoon of making goodies. The kids each got to pick out a cake that they wanted to make and then they spent the afternoon baking and decorating away. They were so excited to have their own cakes and they turned out really cute! Thank you Aunt Susan for a really fun afternoon!

Summer Time

We had our friends come over to BBQ and watch the USA World Cup Final and we had a lot of fun but unfortunately USA lost. It was pretty disappointing but they had a really good tournament and as usual are such good role models for little girls everywhere.

Saturday we drove out to Boulder City with some friends and started our day riding the Boulder City Train. It was a cute little ride, not going too fast, a perfect speed for Mommies with kids who want to look out over the edge. I am pretty sure Natalie enjoyed the ride the most out of my girls, she like the wind in her face and wanted me to stand so she can look over the rail. The older girls had fun hanging out and chatting with their friends. After the train we took the kids to A&W Root beer and got some lunch and of course root beer floats. After lunch we headed out to see good old Hoover Dam. I enjoyed seeing the new bridge and we got to walk out onto it. It provided a perfect view of the Dam and a good spot for more photo's. By this time all the kids were hot and tired so we knew they had enough. That is probably why when I asked the girls if they had a good day and they pretty much told me that looking at stuff is boring and they didn't even get to play. We had a good chat on the way home about being grateful for things we get to do and see. Hopefully they will look back in a couple of years and have good memories of the day.Friday was "field trip Friday" and we went bowling with friends. This day I had no complaints from the kiddies, it was bowling and then lunch at Burger King and then they got to play in the play thing. They played really hard and had lots of fun!

This was a fun day with just me and my girls. We had to go pick up our car from the shop at Carmax so I was trying to think of fun things to do in Henderson. That's when I thought of Ethel M. We got to go in and see where they make the chocolate, taste the chocolate and then we finished it off with some ice cream. All the girls were on their best behavior and I always love days that I spend with my girls.